Brian Williams
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
London Free Press
A newly approved medication that slows the progression of Alzheimer’s disease is being called “groundbreaking” by a London doctor involved in its development.
Michael Borrie, physician and medical director of the Aging and Memory Clinic at St. Joseph’s Health Care London, said Health Canada’s approval of lecanemab – the first medication shown to stall dementia in people with early-stage Alzheimer’s – is the “most critical change” in combatting the disease in the last 25 years.
“I think this is a very important moment where we finally have a medication that can actually alter the underlying disease process in the brain,” Borrie said.
Borrie said the newly approved drug, already available in more than 50 countries, represents the first time there’s been “anything that can actually slow” the course of Alzheimer’s, an irreversible, chronic neurodegenerative disease that destroys brain cells and progressively erodes memory and cognitive ability.
It’s different from “just treating symptoms,” for people with mild cognitive impairment or early-stage Alzheimer’s – those who according to Borrie remain engaged in daily activities or may still be working.
“We’ve had medications that will help the symptoms of the disease and improve memory for a brief period of time,” Borrie said. “But we haven’t had something that actually slows the underlying disease process, or at least part of that process.”
Some participants from London were involved in clinical trials at Parkwood Hospital, Borrie noted, and he followed their journey through the disease.
Lecanemab, also marketed as leqembi in Canada, is administered intravenously over an hour every two weeks for the first 18 months, Borrie said. The treatment reverses the effects of amyloid proteins in the brain that form sticky clumps, called amyloid plaques, which impair neurological function.
“From the 18-month trial, the delay in the progression of the disease was about five to seven months,” Borrie said.
When the medication was administered over four years, the delay of Alzheimer’s extended to about a year, he said.
“Some people may say, ‘Well, saving one year may not be worthwhile,’ but others would say, ‘If I have mild impairment or mild dementia, reducing the likelihood of me progressing from mild . . . to moderate dementia, I’m going to have a better quality of life,’” Borrie said.
Roughly 85 per cent of people won’t experience symptoms from the treatment, Borrie said. But testing is required to determine if a person carries the APOE4 gene, as individuals with two copies are more susceptible to serious side effects such as brain swelling or small bleeds, he noted.
The Alzheimer Society of Canada, which estimates about 772,000 people across the country live with dementia, praised Health Canada’s approval of lecanemab in a statement on its website.
“While not a cure, and only for people with mild cognitive impairment or early-stage Alzheimer’s disease (mild dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease) this decision represents an important advancement in how we approach treatment and care,” the statement said.
Borrie noted that infusion centres where medication can be administered, genetic testing availability and MRI access are needed for the treatment but said availability in the London region is approaching.
“(People) could be eligible to receive the medication soon,” Borrie said. “I would think within a few months, (but) it will be certainly during 2026 we’ll see this medication being used.”
bwilliams@postmedia.com
